1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and an image processing method, and particularly relates to an image processing apparatus and an image processing method which ensure security by requiring approval for outputting the image.
2. Description of the Prior Art
For an image processing apparatus such as a multi function peripheral (MFP), it is required to previously prevent inadvertent print, transmission, or storage of confidential documents by users. With that background, regarding information leak by a user, a technology to ensure the security has been introduced, where an administrator is made intervene in output process of confidential documents such that the output process cannot be executed without an approval by the administrator.
For example, Unexamined Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-4512 (Patent Document 1) discloses an image processing apparatus which, in cases of receiving an instruction of outputting a confidential document, withholds the outputting process, transmits an approval request to an approver, and notifies the user of the approval result received from the approver. In case of receiving the approver's approval, the apparatus notifies the user of that effect, and execute the output via receiving an instruction of releasing the withholding of output. Other than this, Patent Document 1 discloses that in case of receiving the approver's approval, the apparatus may immediately outputs the document and notifies the user of the approval result after executing the output. Namely with respect to the outputting process which is made to be approval waiting state, a configuration of starting the output by receiving the instruction by the user after the approver's approval, and a configuration of immediately starting the output after the approval are disclosed.
As image outputting forms by the MFP and the like, there are print, transmission, storage and the like, and these are different in confidential level (security level), from the view point whether these outputted images have possibility of being viewed by anyone else.
For example, in the above described technology, in the configuration of immediately starting the output after the approval, in case of executing a print job, when the user instructing the print of confidential document is absent, if receive the approval the image processing apparatus immediately start the printing of the confidential document, then the printed material of the confidential document ejected on an ejection tray is left out and may be viewed by anyone else, which is a problem in security.
In contrast, in the case of transmission, being different from the printing, since the output material is outputted to the transmission destination, the output material cannot be viewed by anyone being at the side of transmitting image processing apparatus. Therefore, even the confidential document may be started transmission immediately after receiving the approval. However, in the configuration of starting the processing by receiving the instruction by the user after the approver's approval, in cases of executing the job of transmission, the transmission of the approved confidential document is not started until the user instruct separately, and it takes time before transmitting to the destination, which causes a problem to quick processing. In the case of storage, similarly to the transmission, since the output material is outputted to the place of storage, the output material cannot be viewed by anyone being in the periphery of the image processing material, therefore, even the confidential document may be started the storage immediately after receiving the approval. Therefore, since the storage of the approved confidential document is not started until the user instruct separately, this configuration causes a problem in view of quick processing. Further, it is laborious for the user to come to the image processing apparatus for separately instructing the transmission or the storage.
Further, it is a bother for the user to manually set, in every case, switching of whether to immediately start after the approval or to start by receiving the instruction from user after the approval.
In order to solve the above problem, an object of the present invention is to provide an image processing apparatus which is capable of automatically switching the start timing, of the approval waiting job after receiving the approval, to be proper timing in consideration of ensuring security and quick processing.